| Prince Edward | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duke of Kent and Strathearn | |||||
 Portrait by Sir William Beechey, 1818 (originally owned by Mme de Saint-Laurent) | |||||
| Born | 2 November 1767 Buckingham House, London, England | ||||
| Died | 23 January 1820 (aged 52) Woolbrook Cottage, Sidmouth, England | ||||
| Burial | 12 February 1820[1] Royal Vault, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle | ||||
| Spouse | |||||
| Issue | Queen Victoria | ||||
| |||||
| House | Hanover | ||||
| Father | George III | ||||
| Mother | Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz | ||||
| Signature |  | ||||
| Military career | |||||
| Allegiance | |||||
| Service | British Army | ||||
| Years of active service | 1786–1805 | ||||
| Rank | Field marshal (active service) | ||||
| Unit | 7th Regiment of Foot (Royal Fusiliers) | ||||
| Commands | |||||
| Battles / wars | |||||
| Awards | Mentioned in dispatches | ||||
Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (Edward Augustus; 2 November 1767 – 23 January 1820) was the fourth son and fifth child of King George III and Queen Charlotte. His only child, Victoria, became Queen of the United Kingdom 17 years after his death.
Prince Edward was created Duke of Kent and Strathearn and Earl of Dublin on 23 April 1799[2] and, a few weeks later, appointed a General and commander-in-chief of British forces in the Maritime Provinces of North America.[3] On 23 March 1802, he was appointed Governor of Gibraltar and nominally retained that post until his death. The Duke was appointed Field-Marshal of the Forces on 3 September 1805.[4]
Edward lived in Lower Canada and Nova Scotia from 1791 to 1800. He is credited with the first use of the term Canadian to mean both French and English settlers in the Canadas, using the term to quell a riot between the two groups at a polling station in Charlesbourg on 27 June 1792.[5] In the 21st century, he has been styled the "Father of the Canadian Crown" for his contribution to the development of Canada.[6] Edward was also the first British prince to enter the United States since the recognition of American independence in 1783, travelling to Boston on foot from Lower Canada in 1794.
- ^ "Royal Burials in the Chapel since 1805". stgeorges-windsor.org. College of St George. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
- ^ Whitehall, 23 April 1799.
The King has been pleased to grant to His Most Dearly-Beloved Son Prince Edward, and to the Heirs Male of His Royal Highness's Body lawfully begotten, the Dignities of Duke of the Kingdom of Great Britain, and of Earl of the Kingdom of Ireland, by the Names, Styles, and Titles of Duke of Kent, and of Strathearn, in the Kingdom of Great Britain, and of Earl of Dublin, in the Kingdom of Ireland. "No. 15126". The London Gazette. 23 April 1799. p. 372. - ^ Whitehall, 17 May 1799.
The King has been pleased to appoint His Royal Highness General Edward Duke of Kent, K.G. to be General and Commander in Chief of His Majesty's Forces in North America, in the Room of General Robert Prescott. London Gazette issue 15133, page 458, published 14 May 1799. - ^ "No. 15840". The London Gazette. 3 September 1805. p. 1114.
- ^ Tidridge, Nathan. Prince Edward, Duke of Kent: Father of the Canadian Crown (Toronto, ON: Dundurn Press, 2013), 90.
- ^ Taube, Michael. A Neglected Royal (Toronto, ON: Literary Review of Canada, 2013), 43.